I'll preface this with, I am a warm sleeper. The short answer - hopefully not.
The last trip I went on (end of October), the temp got down to 34. I had a full length thermarest pad and a 30 degree bag and I wore wool socks, silk long johns and a wool hat.
I was very toasty. Originally had on a sweatshirt, but had to take that off around 2:00am.
Hopefully, you will be able to combine either the CCF or another pad with the sleeping bag and be toasty too.
There are very few problems we can solve ourselves, but there is almost nothing we cannot solve together.
Most often when someone says they can't, they are unwilling to try.
You've got the closed cell foam pad...getting another cheap one to form a "T" may help. Another possibility is to take your son's sleeping bag (since he's not going), and using some cord, open it up and rig it as a temporary underquilt.
You could use a small object on the inside of the bag by each corner, larkshead around it, and tie off to your suspension with an adjustable knot like a tautline hitch (or use shock cord in the first place). Then, to close up the ends, use the bag's drawstring (if it has it), zip it up partially and tie it off so it doesn't unzip, or possibly just go with a loop with an adjustable knot to hold it up against your hammock as best you can. It won't be perfect, but could work for a night or two in combination with your regular sleeping bag as a top quilt.
No matter what, test your rig at home, lying in it for at least a couple of hours to allow the cold to seep in if it's going to.
"Can't we all just live in trees and hammocks?"
-- Sam Gribley, My Side of the Mountain
I've slept comfortably down to 30* with my Thermarest inflatable (whose r-value is not that much different from ccf pads) and a 40* bag. Put pad in hammock. Lay on it.
(Either I"m inside the sleeping bag or using the bag like a top quilt.) Wearing long johns, a fleece top, and hat. Sometimes using a hot-water-filled Nalgene bottle, or not.
In other words: don't sweat the tiniest details, it can be hard for (all the helpful, experienced hangers here) to explain all the possibilities, and some things will only make sense after you hang a few times.
Hammocking really doesn't have to be complicated. HYOH, and have fun learning what works for you!
Freezing is learning!
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If this is your first time to be able to test, then by all means do test and try to make it work, since you can bring your tent as a backup. My advice is to keep it simple. Trying to manage several moving parts like customizing a pad and dealing with a reflector might actually detract from the learning experience. You're going to have enough to deal with just figuring out how to get adjusted in the hammock with the pad. Bottom entry only? Real hassle getting in and out because you have to move the pad to the side and then do mucho wiggling to get it back under you. If you've got the zipper model, then you'll be better off getting in from the top.
Couple of things, first is your pad width... 24" is not quite enough, but could probably get by with that. If you've got a 20" pad, then you definitely need a SPE (Speer Pad Extender, adds 4" to each side), or you can just go buy a wider closed cell pad. I think closed cell is the way to go for this trip. You can experiment with the air pad as well, especially if you're bringing it anyway for the tent.
Second is to make sure you're doing what you can to help your sleeping bag be as efficient as possible in less than ideal conditions. When you're on the ground, the pressure points are more defined, whereas in a hammock they are more spread out. That means there is more surface area of your bag that will be too compressed to insulate properly, and therefore, less of your bag (on top) to help insulate you than you are used to. You might consider unzipping the bag and using it more as a quilt, especially if you're wearing more clothes.
There are other cold weather things you can do to stay warm that you otherwise might not do in 33 degree weather, but might payoff more so for you now than some of the little tricks that more experienced hangers use. Keep it simple, find other ways to keep yourself warm, like a hot water bottle or those mega-warmer packets. The close cell pad should be enough for your backside.
It is almost all the same as on the ground except rather than your pad providing both cushioning and insulation(because your compressed bag provides very little to no backside insulation ground OR hammock), it only has to provide insulation in the hammock. No pad= no, or almost no insulation for your back, just like on the ground. A synthetic bag (Polarguard etc) will provide some insulation, but certainly not enough(it does not compress as fully as down) unless it is pretty warm.Originally Posted by CubmasterTony
So bottom line, nothing has changed from ground. You needed a pad on the ground, you need one( or a substitute kike an UQ) in the hammock.
But here is where there are some difs, but you probably won't notice them unless it is really cold: the air might well be colder than the ground or even snow. But at 20 or 30F, any ground sleeping pad should still be able to handle that with ease. Also, the wind can blow under your hammock and add considerable wind chill. So you will need to block that with your tarp or some sort of sock. Also, regarding TOP warmth, most tents hold in some warmth and do a good job of keeping wind chill out. If your hammock has a net, it will serve some of this function, it will hold in some warmth and keep out some wind. But unless you have some sort of "sock", for example a HH SuperShelter with it's top cover, or very good tarp coverage, you won't be able to match a 2 man tent/fly with 2 people in it. So, depending on your hammock system, you might need a little extra top insulation to make up for this.
At some point you may want to look into UQs or HH SuperShelters just as a matter of comfort and less bulk if you backpack. But you can certainly get er done with pads. Your biggest challenge in a single layer hammock will be staying on the pad. Search here and you can find lots of helpful tips for that.
Also, it is hard to get inside a bag in a hammock for most folks. There is a recent thread here on that subject, and many older ones. Or you might be warm enough, and way more comfy, just using your bag as a quilt. But def go for it! And a car camp with a tent bail out option will be perfect for experimenting! And lots of fun too!
Last edited by BillyBob58; 11-17-2011 at 12:09.
Excellent use of "Airplane"-type humor.
Jim
RIP Leslie Neilson.
no the sb should go between the sleeping bag and the pad (and the rest of the bottom insulation).
yes, wool and fleece blankets. insulate the torso the most, so maybe fold them, for thickness. also take bottles for a hot water bottle , just to be sureOther than making a T out of 2 CCF Pads, what else would you suggest for bottom insulation? I don't know if I'd be able to rig up a proper underquilt, but would just laying a good blanket inside the hammock under my bag help?
i hope you'll be ok. let us know how it went!
Though my experience is not as vast as most here, I have had the opportunity to hang at 41* F with wind and rain....twice (we know how to pick the right time to camp). In a GT single with a 20* bag and a 20" self inflating pad (almost completely deflated) inside the bag, I was toasty warm....actually had to open the bag a bit to keep from sweating. I find the putting the pad inside the bag keeps it from sliding around. I was wearing hiking socks, sweats and a fleece top. it should be noted that I am a warm sleeper.
As for getting into the sleeping bag, I find that with the bag wide open if I sit my butt closer to the foot end than I would normally need to and planting my feet in the bottom end I am able to slide up into place without having to adjust the bag (just grip the pad and bag and slide your butt up).
As I'm sure the post say pads will work. But you are also getting to the comfort limit of the bag, so have a good base layer to sleep in with some extra clothing if you can.
Keep the bag tucked so you shoulders don't bump the cool hammock, my first cool weather that woke me up more than anything.
If there is any way to test the gear before hand I would highly recommend it, either in the yard, or at a park close by.
"truth is uncontainable, and inexpressible. It neither is nor is not.
This unformulated principle is the foundation of the different systems of all the sages."
Diamond Sutra
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